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By:
Ashley Holt
Pasadena ISD Staff
The annual
McDonald’s Texas Invitational Basketball Tournament gets
bigger and better every year, and this year is no exception
as the tournament is going regional with the help of the
Pearland Area Chamber of Commerce, Pearland ISD and the
Pearland Convention and Visitors Bureau.
“We are very excited about working with all of the folks in
Pearland and know that the partnership will add greatly to
our tournament success,” said tournament chairman Ben
Meador. “We see a long-term relationship developing here.”
Pearland Convention
and Visitor’s Bureau Vice President of Tourism Bryan Roller
joined the tournament’s steering committee recently, and he
said the city is excited to be involved in such a great
tournament.
“The Pearland Chamber of Commerce, the
Convention and Visitors Bureau and Pearland ISD are all
strong supporters of working regionally for the betterment
of our area,” Roller said. “I think a strong alliance
between our cities, our chambers and our school districts
will equate to success for all the entities involved. It
takes a lot of resources to pull off a first-class
tournament of this size, and by combining our talents and
efforts, we can really showcase our region.”
The tournament hosts
the most talented 48-boys’ teams and 32-girls’ teams from
across the state and is sponsored in large part by
McDonald’s, the City of Pasadena and the Pasadena Chamber of
Commerce. The tournament serves as the primary fundraiser
for the Pasadena ISD Education Foundation, which provides
$100,000 in grants every year to help fund innovative
educational programs districtwide that cannot be afforded
through regular operating budgets. Last year, the tournament
made a record $100,000 donation to the foundation.
“The quality of
talent in this region and from across the state makes this
one of the top tournaments in the nation,” Roller said.
“Pearland will bring tremendous energy and a potential for
growth to the tournament. Our energy, resourcefulness and
determination combined with our commitment to showcase
Pearland, will help us achieve this goal.”
Pearland’s
involvement in the tournament started with the need of
another facility to be used as a game site since Pasadena
High School’s gym will be undergoing renovations at the time
of this year’s tournament, which will be held Nov. 20-22.
Pearland ISD’s Pearland High School will be a new site at
this year’s tournament.
“This will be good
for the tournament because Pearland ISD has a great
facility,” Meador said. “Their people are very nice to work
with and have always been great supporters of our
tournament. They will also be able to play a student game
there as well as have several pool games there.”
In addition to
providing additional facilities for games during the
tournament, Pearland will also be involved in securing
sponsors and selling advertisement space in the tournament’s
program. With 50 percent of Pearland’s secured income going
back to the city, Meador said he believes the positive
trends of the tournament’s past five years will continue to
grow for Pasadena ISD’s Education Foundation.
“All sponsorship funds and program advertising funds raised
from Pearland will be shared equally with the city, its
school district and the tournament,” Meador said. “The
addition of the Pearland chamber and the people in that
community just expands our capabilities and will allow us to
derive more funding and be in a position to exceed the
donation made to the foundation last year.”
Pearland will also
be responsible for securing volunteers at the Pearland game
site and for helping promote the tournament and gain
attendance at games at the Pearland site.
Roller said he believes the City of Pearland and its school
district will benefit tremendously from being a part of this
tournament because of the large economic impact special
events such as this one brings into the cities in which they
are held.
“From the city’s standpoint, I think
the continued efforts to bring first-class athletic events
to Pearland assists us in branding our city and our region
as a destination for sports or student-related events,” he
said. “Teams, parents and friends travel to support those
teams meaning new revenue is brought into our community by
way of hotel, gas, food and retail purchases. It will also
help our schools with fundraising through booster clubs that
run the concession stands at these various events.”
Meador said some
future goals of the partnership include expanding the
tournament to include more teams and utilize more facilities
in the Pearland area.
“With Bryan on board
our steering committee, we will be soliciting Pearland’s
ideas and opinions as we move forward to explore all of our
options,” Meador said. “They are great people to work with
and we look forward to a longstanding and very successful
relationship.”
Meador said he thinks it’s important
for organizations in surrounding cities to get involved in
this event and that he is looking forward to the success of
this year’s tournament with Pearland’s participation.
“This is not just a
Pasadena event,” Meador said. “We have long had the opinion
that anything that happens in southeast Harris County is
good for every city located here. The success of this
tournament has sent a clear message that says our people are
enthusiastic and energetic enough to stage a major
undertaking such as this event; our business community is
very generous; and those who work the event have the
planning and visionary capabilities to improve the event and
make it better each year. When we begin to think about what
can be rather than just what is, then we begin to see the
possibilities.”
For Pearland area businesses interested
in becoming a tournament sponsor, please contact Roller at
281-485-3534. For Pasadena area businesses interested in
sponsoring the event, please contact Rita Townsend,
tournament executive assistant, at 713-986-0527. Visit
www.texasinvitational.com for more information about the
tournament.
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